Ryan Garcia is the current NABF super featherweight champion. He is a product of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. Being only 18 years of age he has already won an impressive 17 consecutive fights with 15 out of those 17 being by knockout.
Ryan’s Story: From Gang Member to Professional Boxer
Ryan was born on March 14, 1997, in Victorville, California to parents from Guatemala and Mexico. Ryan grew up catching lobsters, crabs, and fish alongside his father at a local pier for money as well as doing odd jobs like cutting grass and selling ice cream to help support his family financially since his dad had been laid off work during Ryan’s youth due to an injury suffered on the job.
As a young boy, Ryan always wanted to box but his dad did not approve. On one occasion when Ryan was about 11 years old he was involved in a shooting and got shot in the leg while at school. At this point, Ryan’s family who was already struggling to make ends meet knew they could not support Ryan and at such a young age he and his older brother Oscar Jr. went their separate ways with Ryan staying with his grandmother and stepfather while Oscar Jr. left for Mexico at 16 years of age.
How Ryan Garcia became a champion
Ryan Garcia came from humble beginnings growing up in California’s high desert area where crime rates are high and opportunities are low. He attended various elementary schools until settling down into Serrano Elementary School located in the east end of Victorville, CA where he spent most of his youth.
Ryan Garcia was often bullied in school for being Hispanic and shy, but he found comfort in sports. He would play football with his brother Oscar Garcia who helped train him to box by teaching him how to shadowbox.
When Ryan was 11 years old he got shot at Serrano Elementary School while trying to break up a fight between 2 girls on the playground. The bullet went through both of his legs causing him to be confined to crutches for 4 months, but it didn’t stop him from practicing boxing nor chasing his dreams of becoming an Olympic gold medalist just like Oscar De La Hoya did under similar circumstances.
After getting shot, Ryan became even more determined than ever before to become the best boxer he could be so that nobody would ever have to deal with such a terrible experience like he did.
How much does Ryan Garcia weights?
He has a fight record of 21-1 and currently holds the WBO NABO lightweight title
Ryan Garcia is the current NABF super featherweight champion.
He was a product of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece and he has won an impressive 17 consecutive fights with 15 out of those 17 being by knockout.
- His weight class is 140 pounds.
- He was born on November 11, 1990, in Los Angeles, California
- Garcia’s height is 5’11” and he has a reach of 69 inches.
A true inspiration for all ages
The number he wears on his trunks, 24, was his age when he won the U.S. Nationals Tournament but said that the day he turned pro he would wear the number 99 to represent all those who are still out there fighting for their dreams no matter how young or old they are.
“My philosophy as far as being champion is just being humble. Complacency kills talent.” – Ryan Garcia
Conclusion
Ryan Garcia is a very inspiring boxer because he had to overcome so much adversity to become the U.S. Nationals Tournament champion and win his first professional fight at such a young age, but also because even at such a young age he knows how important it is not to let complacency set into his career before it has even started which means he will likely be fighting for many years as one of boxing’s great champions like Oscar De La Hoya did if he remains humble and continues working hard until he gets to where he wants to go in life – winning an Olympic gold medal just like De La Hoya did.
